ETYM Old Eng. beche, AS. bece; akin to Dutch beuk, Old High Germ. buocha, German buche, Icel. beyki, Dan. bög, Swed. bok, Russ. buk, Latin fagus.
(Homonym: beach).
1. Any of several large deciduous trees with rounded spreading crowns and smooth gray bark and small sweet edible triangular nuts enclosed in burs; north temperate regions; SYN. beech tree.
2. Wood of any of various beech trees; used for flooring and containers and plywood and tool handles; SYN. beechwood.
Genus of trees Fagus, of the family Fagaceae. Of the ten species in this genus only one is native to North America; others grow in Europe. The American beech F. grandifolia grows to 30 m/100 ft, with blue-gray bark; a broad, rounded crown; and leaves that are lanceolate, serrate, triangular, and edible.